Hearts Under Fire
by ninaxwings
Summary: Begins during the attack on the CIA compound. Azazel switches sides and spends the week at the Xavier mansion. Chaos ensues. Please R&R if you want more chapters.
1. Run for Cover

What if Azazel had switched sides? Set in the First Class universe during the attack on the CIA compound. Random characters will be popping up if you have a problem with that don't read. I've only seen the movies and read stuff online so I won't be following the comics. I'll write more chapters if anyone likes this. Please R&R. If you don't like the way I'm writing the characters tell me so I can do a better job. R&R if you want me to write more, don't be a lurker. I have 3 chapters written so tell me if you'd like me to post them.

Hearts Under Fire

Azazel made short work of the CIA agents and guards on the compound. He, Janos, and Shaw had emptied the place after about five minutes. Stupid Americans. Azazel hadn't come here just for the thrill of killing American agents, though. He wanted to see the young mutants for himself. He needed to see if they were worth being allied with, if they stood a chance. Now he could see they were just a bunch of scared kids. Before, Shaw's plan seemed so distant and crazy Izazel never worried it might actually happen. Now it was happening and if he didn't quit now he might bring about the destruction of the planet. Izazel wanted world domination as much as the next mutant but not over a burnt-out, apocalyptic planet. Izazel couldn't just kill Shaw, though. Nature abhors a vacuum of power. He had to do this the right way. Without him Shaw's plan would crumble. No nuclear war and he could go on to father many little teleporters. Maybe with one of the female mutants here but he was getting ahead of himself. He wiped blood off of his swords and went to stand with Janos and Shaw. Shaw was making a speech to the young mutants. The telepath wasn't here but Azazel would meet him soon enough. Shaw was saying the mutants could rise up to rule and live like kings and queens. It was true he, Janos, and Emma lived quite the good life with Shaw. It was all yachts and champagne and a wardrobe full of sharp outfits. That was Azazel's favorite part. He smoothed his hands over the front of his black Gucci jacket absentmindedly; he hated to leave all of his clothes behind. Janos nudging him snapped him out of his inner turmoil.

"What's the matter with you?" he hissed into Azazel's ear. Azazel's mind came back to the present.

"Nyet…nothing." He muttered. Janos gave him a sideways look and went back to being quiet. It seemed that one of the young mutants was going to join them, a young girl with dark skin and hair. She came to stand by Shaw. Azazel was going to drop Shaw back on his yacht and then simply come back here but he didn't want to give Shaw anymore pawns. Maybe he would wait until Emma came back from Russia and bring all of them with him. It was a pleasant thought but he knew it would never happen. If it hadn't been for what happened with Darwin maybe Izazel wouldn't have left at all. The young mutants began squabbling amongst themselves and another one said he wanted to join them. A young black man that said his powers allowed him to adapt to survive. He went and joined hands with the girl and Janos, and then all hell broke loose.

"Alex, now!" yelled Darwin. He curled around Angel and ducked, his skin becoming rock hard. One of the young men surged with bright red light and a beam of power shot from his chest at Shaw. Shaw absorbed it and grinned at them. If Azazel had known what Shaw was going to do he would have acted sooner but it happened so fast.

"Adapt to this." Said Shaw. He caught Darwin by the collar and shoved the power down his throat. What a horrible way to die. This couldn't wait, Azazel had to make a choice right now. Shaw had gone too far killing another mutant. Something had to be done. He drew his swords and advanced on Shaw.

"I am done serving you." He said, bracing himself for combat. Janos and Angel started backing up, not wanting to get caught up in the clash of the titans. Shaw reacted by grabbing Janos and generating balls of power in his hands; he held them inches away from his captive's face. Angel screamed and tried to get away but Shaw grabbed her by the back of her coat, trapping her wings.

"Want to see two more die?" asked Shaw "Now you take us out of here and I'll overlook this temporary case of insanity."

Azazel swore in Russian, and then he did as Shaw said.

As quickly as they had come, they were gone.

Alex and Raven came to stand by the pieces of molten rock that were Darwin's body. Sean and Hank joined them and they started picking up pieces of their friend, unsure of what they should do now. As if to answer their silent question, Azazel popped into existence in front of them, he was alone. Raven and Hank screamed which caused Sean to scream. The windows that weren't already broken shattered. Azazel dropped to his knees and covered his ears. Alex was getting ready to attack him but he vanished and appeared behind Sean, covering his mouth.

"Comrade, that's enough." He said, giving Sean a shake before he let him go. Sean and the others huddled together, terrified.

"Please don't take us to Shaw." Said Raven. Azazel held up his hands, trying his best not to look menacing.

"You have me wrong," said Azazel, switching his tail back and forth moodily "I want to join you, against Shaw. I can help you kill him."

"Help us?" said Hank, outraged "You did this." He gestured to the dead men and destroyed compound.

"Where did you take our friend?" asked Raven. She took a few steps toward Azazel and crossed her arms.

"We can get her back but it isn't possible right now. I would have brought her If it were." These kids were really trying his patience. He didn't want to leave Janos with Shaw but he'd made his choice.

"How can we trust you after this?" asked Sean. Azazel was deeply offended.

"Fine. I'll go sit on beach in Cuba and drink until missiles come. You fix this without me." He turned to leave but Raven said

"Wait," she turned to her friends "We need him. He knows all of Shaw's plans and it's the only way we'll get Angel back."

Azazel raised an eyebrow and waited for their response.

"This is crazy, he'll kill us all in our sleep." Said Hank.

"I think we should let Charles make this decision, he can tell us if he's lying." Said Raven.

"I am no liar," Said Azazel "Shaw is liar, he want to nuke world. You see."

To everyone's surprise Sean held out his hand for Azazel to shake.

"We need all the help we can get, welcome aboard, man."

If Azazel hated anything it was bad manners. He shook Sean's hand, his tail bobbling happily behind him.

"We are all comrades now, yes?" he asked. Hank whirled and walked away from them, muttering to himself. _How rude _thought Izazel. Alex and Raven ignored him and shook Azazel's hand as Sean had. Raven squeezed his hand and looked him in the eye, seriously.

"Don't make me regret this." She warned him. Her brazenness thrilled him and he wondered what her mutation was. He nodded to her while making a promise to himself _one day you will be mine _he thought.

Shaw was not a happy camper. Emma had been captured and Azazel betrayed him. His new mutant wasn't particularly useful either but he needed to keep her and Janos around for a little while longer. Back on the sub he was down in his private quarters, fuming. He had a backup plan but losing his teleporter was going to put a kink in it. Good thing he had two of almost everything. His reinforcements would meet them soon and then he would put down the telepath's motley team. They had better with how much money he was paying for them. Emma could have escaped and come back to him by now but he had a feeling she was pissed about his helmet. He'd get another telepath, no big deal. Everyone was replaceable.


	2. Demon I Cling to

Charles, Moira, and Erik arrived back at the ruined compound the day after the night raid. Raven and the others came out to greet them, including Azazel.

"This was a terrible idea," said Charles, hugging Raven for the third time "All of you have to go home, it's too dangerous."

"What?" they all chorused at the same time.

"No way." Said Alex. After some bickering Erik pulled Charles aside and convinced him that they could handle it. All this time Azazel stood amongst them quietly, he thought it best to let them work it out.

"What about _him?" _asked Hank, pointing at Azazel. It was like Charles and Erik suddenly realized he was there.

"What, exactly are you doing here?" asked Charles, puzzled by the teleporter's presence. Alex spoke up for him.

"He's switched sides, be happy he's with us," said Alex "And he's very sorry about the raid and he knows it was wrong, don't you Azazel?"

They all turned and waited for his reply. Azazel had said no such thing to Alex but he went along with it. The young mutant had spoken up for him, after all.

"Yes, I will help now if you let me." he clapped Alex on the shoulder to thank him. Erik suggested Charles read Azazel's mind before they went anywhere with him.

"Do you mind?" asked Charles out of courtesy. He touched his fingers to his forehead.

"Nyet." Azazel nodded his head.

At first Charles only scratched the surface of the teleporter's mind. He saw Shaw's plans and read the way Azazel felt about them. His desire to join them was as real as it gets. In a way his intentions matched Erik's. He didn't want to join the humans but he disapproved of Shaw's methods. Notes of worry for his friend Janos laced these thoughts. It was good Azazel genuinely did want to stop the destruction of the planet. As Charles pressed deeper he found the reason why, it came to him like a vision. He could see Azazel holding a child on his hip, a child with a tail. He wanted to breed and make more teleporters. In the next vision he was with what seemed like a litter of children in all different colors. There was a pink one, a yellow, even one that matched Azazel's red.

_He's supposed to be some kind of evil genius and all the man wants to do is procreate. Unbelievable. _Charles thought to himself. Then Charles saw it. In one of Azazel's thoughts he saw Raven holding a baby. Oh no, no way in hell. There was no way Charles was going to let him…mate with his sister. Charles pulled out of his mind and came back to the present. Everyone was staring at him.

"You can come with us," he said "But don't think about _that _anymore. You know what I mean."

Azazel knew he was talking about Raven but he just nodded like he was agreeing. Charles turned to the rest of the group. "We all need to train, all of us even you, Azazel."

Azazel knew he didn't need training but he could be of use to the others.

"I will help with the training." Azazel offered.

"All right, thank you." Replied Charles. A van pulled up to them and the back opened. Moira was inside. She called for all of them to come get in the van. Then she noticed Azazel and it took a great deal on Charles' part to explain his presence. Once everything was settled they decided they would teleport to their new base instead. So many people at the same time would be a little tricky so he took them in two groups. Five minutes later they were standing outside a huge mansion that was Charles and Raven's childhood home. Erik put his arms around Charles and Raven and laughed.

"How did the two of you survive living in such poverty?" he joked.

"We got by," said Raven "I call the master bedroom."

Charles threw up his hands in surrender.

"Which master bedroom?" asked Hank.

_Of course he wants to know where she'll sleep _thought Izazel. He had noticed by now he had a competitor for Raven's affections but he certainly didn't see Hank as a threat. Charles picked up on his thoughts and shook his head at Izazel disapprovingly.

"No distractions," said Charles "Now let's go unpack."

In spite of being brought on Shaw's sub somewhat against her will, Angel was having the time of her life. They ported in Miami after a few days underwater and Shaw sent her into the city with Janos and a wad of cash. They had instructions to bring him a bottle of Hendrickson's gin and blow the rest on clothes. She strolled down the street arm in arm with Janos; they were quietly speaking Spanish to each other. To anyone else they looked very much like a young couple in love. Janos brought Angel to one of Azazel's favorite places; the Gucci store. He couldn't come into the city on normal trips with Janos but at night he would teleport himself wherever he wished and raid the designer stores. Janos wished Azazel had stayed with them even though he knew he'd see him again soon. Angel was fine company anyways and he was growing to like her after only a few days. He settled himself in a chair by the window and waited while Angel picked out a wide array of different clothes. She came out of the dressing room and modeled a dress for him. He gestured for her to do a spin so he could see the back. Angel laughed and twirled, her dress fanning out around her.

"Perfect." He said in English. This went on for a while until they had several shopping bags filled. Janos gave the woman at the counter a huge stack of bills when it was time to go and she winked at Angel.

"Hang onto this one, honey he's a keeper," she said "Rich and handsome, aren't you a lucky girl?"

Janos blushed deeply and went to carry Angel's bags for her.

"Thank you, I will." Said Angel to the woman. This wasn't the first time they'd been mistaken as a couple. On the way back to the sub they stopped and got the gin Shaw asked for. By the time they got back to the dock the sun was setting. Janos saw to it that Shaw had his gin and enough ice then he and Angel opened the hatch and went up on the platform to watch the sun go down. The ocean lulled softly around them, waves lapping at the sides of the vessel. In peaceful moments like this he felt almost normal. Angel looked up at him and smiled

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" she asked him. Janos looked down in the hatch to make sure Shaw wasn't watching them from the control room. With Shaw personal attachments were a weakness that could be exploited.

"You are beautiful." Said Janos. They stood in silence for the rest of the sunset with their arms linked. There was only trouble down this path and they both knew that.

Even though she was home Raven felt uncomfortable. Unable to sleep she rose from her bed and quietly made her way to the kitchen. She wasn't the only one having trouble sleeping. She could hear Sean and Alex talking and laughing and the sound of glasses clinking. It was the perfect time for a practical joke. She focused her mind and shifted herself into Charles' form. Trying her best to adopt his mannerisms she stalked into the kitchen. She acted very much like a parent that caught her child doing something bad.

"Drinking before the first day of training," she spat "Splendid."

"We needed to unwind from the stress of the raid." Said Sean, swaying a bit as he spoke. How drunk were they? There was an empty bottle of vodka on the table. The bastards hadn't even saved any for her. There was a whooshing of air behind her and Azazel appeared, he was holding another bottle with his tail. His sudden appearance startled her and her guise flickered. The three of them realized it was she and let out a collective sigh of relief.

"Raven, we thought we were busted." Said Alex. Raven shifted again back into her natural form. There was no need to pretend to be human right now, especially next to Azazel

"You will be busted if you don't pour me some of that." Raven sat down and gestured for Azazel to sit as well. He grinned and got another glass before sitting in the chair next to hers.

"Charles is going to kill us if he finds out." Said Alex, shaking his head. Azazel took this quite literally since he was used to Shaw's regime.

"I will kill him if he tries." He said, curling his fists. He used his tail to fill the glasses in front of them.

"It's very kind of you to want to protect us but we do things differently around here," said Raven "Charles is no Shaw."

"You'll get used to it, man." Said Alex. He raised his glass and toasted all of them before taking a swig. He shook his head like he was trying to get the taste out of his mouth. Azazel laughed at this and downed his glass in one swallow. Raven hadn't touched hers yet. Charles never let her drink when they went to the pubs out of fear she would lose focus on her disguise. She had only drunk on rare occasions before. Here, among other mutants she was safe. She took a sip and almost spit it out, the clear liquid burned her throat and she shuddered. The men laughed and clinked their glasses together. Feeling self-conscious, Raven changed back to her human appearance. Long, blonde hair tumbled down her shoulders. She hid her face behind her glass and drank more.

"Raven, there's no need to hide around us," said Sean "I think your natural form is cool."

No man had ever complimented her blue appearance, not even Charles. Not even Hank.

"You do?" she asked them. This time it was Azazel that spoke.

"I have never seen such beauty in all my life, will you deny me it now?" he asked her. Raven found him quite charming and that scared her a little bit. She was still afraid of what he could do if he wanted to. There was something about him that drew her in, though. Wanting to please him she changed back to her normal appearance, yellow eyes and all.

"Now you are perfect." Said Azazel. Under the deep blue of her skin Raven felt a blush creeping under her skin.

"To perfection." Said Alex. They toasted again and drank. They stayed in the kitchen for what felt like hours, drinking and talking. Raven, Alex, and Sean got staggeringly drunk but Azazel seemed somewhat sober. He proceeded to drink them under the floor and regale them with tales of his time in the Russian army. At some point while they were talking his tail curled around Raven's ankle loosely and the tip rested on her foot. It didn't bother her; in truth she was enjoying all the male attention. In the wee hours of the morning Sean and Alex said goodnight and stumbled off to bed. Raven tried to do the same but she tripped over her own feet and would have fallen on her face had Azazel not caught her. He scooped her up in his arms and started to carry her to her room.

"Easy does it now." He said, trying not to laugh at how drunk she was. She pressed her face against his shoulder and was perfectly content to be carried.

"You really think I'm beautiful, even like this?" she asked him.

"Nyet," he said, "You are the most beautiful. Nothing compares."

Raven didn't know how to respond. She should be terrified of him but now that he had joined them she felt like he really was one of them. He delivered her to her bed and pulled the covers back so she could climb in. Raven thanked him and just like that, he was gone. She certainly had a lot to think about. For now, she needed to sleep off her drunk. The next week would be grueling and she had to be ready.

_Well you're off to a great start _she thought to herself sarcastically _Charles is going to kill us tomorrow._


	3. She Loves Everybody

Raven rose early the next morning with a pounding hangover. The night before was a blur of clinking glasses and Russian. She couldn't believe they'd gotten drunk with the teleporter. Dragging herself from the bed, she showered and assumed her human appearance. She wore sweat pants and a tank top for training. She wondered what Azazel would wear to train in, his tailored designer suit? Everyone except Azazel was in the kitchen having breakfast. Moira was making coffee while Charles and Erik read over a newspaper. Sean and Alex were staring down into their cups of coffee, clearly nursing hangovers as well. Hank came to greet her and insisted she take the seat by his. He put a plate with toast in front of her and sat down. Raven nibbled at it and tried to think about anything other than her hangover. Hank had his hand on hers and he was talking about her cellular structure again. She had been quite taken with him when they first met but now it seemed all he wanted was to change her. Still, it didn't hurt when he used words like i_ncredibl_e and _amazing._

"I'd like to go over the plans for today, again since Raven just joined us," said Charles "And where is Azazel?"

Sean perked up a little bit; he had learned a new trick. He tilted his head back and whistled. It was so piercing Raven could feel it in the back of her head. Or maybe it was just the hangover. Seconds later, Azazel popped into existence next to Sean. He was holding a big coffee machine that looked like it could produce gallons at a time.

"You call me?" he asked Sean, putting the machine on the counter "Now we have enough coffee all the time."

Everyone was still adjusting to Azazel being a part of their everyday lives. Seeing him do trivial things was strange to most of them. Alex and Sean had accepted him into their little boy's group, Raven could tell. Erik and Charles respected him. Moira was afraid of him. Hank hated him and Raven….thought he was a decent guy so far. Hank's hand closed around hers, trying to play the possessive boyfriend she supposed. She could play along for now.

"Nice trick, when did you figure it out?" asked Erik. Azazel and Sean exchanged a look and it took everything in Sean's power not to laugh.

"Last night, it was Azazel really I just whistled."

"You can hear him anywhere?" asked Charles.

"Da. Of Course." Said Azazel.

"This is great," said Charles "And thanks for the new coffee machine just don't tell me where it came from."

Azazel shrugged like it was no big deal. Erik made it known he was ready for the day to start by clearing his throat.

"Azazel is going to train all of you in hand-to-hand combat. Sparring will be held in the weight room. If you are not in a match use the spare time to lift weights and stretch," Said Erik. Hank started to raise his hand but Erik glared at him menacingly "There are no exceptions, that means you, Hank."

"I'm going to work with each of you individually on your powers," said Charles "When you're not with me, you're with Azazel, understood?"

Everyone around the table nodded and some of them chugged their remaining coffee.

"Come find me if you get hurt, I'm going to set up an infirmary in the first floor study," Said Moira to Charles she said "Shall we?"

"We shall," he replied "Erik, I want to work with you first."

Charles, Erik, and Moira left the kitchen together. Alex, Raven, and Sean sighed in relief. Hank was puzzled. Then he realized Azazel was watching Raven and tightened his hold on her hand.

"Did something happen last night that I should know about?" asked Hank. To his horror Raven and Azazel exchanged smiles.

"Nyet, " said Azazel "Come now we train."

He disappeared and left them to file out of the kitchen together. Hank didn't say anything but he knew something was going on. He just had to figure out what it was and perfect the serum before something happened to Raven. Azazel would only harm her, kill her even. Certainly she would lose her connection to him if she looked normal all the time. That was all it was, after all. It had to be. Silently plotting Hank followed the group to the weight room.

A group of new mutants had arrived on the sub by helicopter. Apparently one of them was a technopath and could fly it with his mind. Shaw came out of his quarters to greet the group of men. Angel and Janos had been summoned to the common room as well and were trying to hide their disapproval. These men were mercenaries in American military body armor.

"Stryker sends his regrets that he could not be here," said an Asian man with a row of handguns holstered to his vest. He was introduced to them as Agent Zero. Bradley, the technopath introduced himself next. Shaw didn't bother to stay for the rest of the introductions; he left with instructions to make themselves comfortable. Angel thought he was sulking over Emma. A black man that was wearing a cowboy hat with his armor circled the lavish room and whistled.

"This beats the base." he said to one of the men that stood taller than all the others. The huge man shook his head at his companions and held out his hand for Angel to shake.

"They don't mean to be rude ma'am, " he said "My name is Freddie Dukes and this here is John Wraith." He gestured to the man with the cowboy hat who bowed to them mockingly. A young man with two katanas strapped to his back held his hand out to Janos and Angel, he even cracked a smile.

"Freddie hates it when we forget our manners," he said "I'm Wade Wilson, a pleasure to meet you.

"And who are you two?" asked Angel, gesturing to the two quiet men standing in the back of the group. There was something animal about them and she didn't like the way the big one was looking at her. Like he was undressing her with his eyes. The shorter man stepped forward and introduced himself as Logan and his brother Victor. Victor only nodded and kept his gaze on Angel's body. Wade stepped in front of her and shook his head disapprovingly.

"You're being creepy," he hissed at Victor lowering his voice to a whisper he said "Don't even think you can get away with that here."

Victor just growled at him and stalked out of the room. He didn't take orders from Wade and he could do whatever he wanted. _Soon _he thought _Soon enough. _

Charles, Erik, and Moira were out in the front yard of the mansion. They had set up an obstacle course for Erik to run through while they shot at him. At first he only deflected the bullets but after a few runs through the course he began taking the guns apart or wrenching them from their hands. He gave the gun he had just taken back to Moira and took a moment to catch his breath. Stopping bullets was no problem but doing so while jumping over hurdles took true focus.

"Nice job." Said Moira. Erik wasn't fond of her but in moments like these he didn't mind her. Their session was interrupted by Hank running outside, waving his arms. Charles started running inside before they could even hear Hank.

"Come quickly, Moira," Charles called over his shoulder "Raven is hurt!"

The four of them ran to the weight room, Charles cursing himself for not taking better care of his sister. When they arrived they found Alex and Sean standing back from Azazel and Raven. She was lying on the floor with her back leaning into his lap. His tail held a towel around her wrist and it was dark with blood. He was putting pressure on it to halt the bleeding. His hands stroked her hair and he apologized over and over again. They had been sparring and Raven tried to grab the tip of his tail, forgetting how sharp it was. It sliced her hand and wrist down to the bone. She was already healing, but very slowly. It would take a few days before the wound was gone and would leave a scar. Hank moved in on her but Azazel held up his hand to stop him.

"Give her some room." He said. Hank was furious but Charles pushed past Hank and sat on the floor by Azazel. He nodded to Moira and she left to retrieve a first-aid kit.

"What happened?" he asked, looking over Raven's wound.

"It was an accident." Said Alex from behind them.

"Of course it was. All he knows how to do is ruin and kill." Said Hank. He glared at Azazel but Azazel didn't engage.

"I am so sorry, chevoka." He said to Raven. Hank opened his mouth again but Charles told Erik to take Hank out of the room.

"Come on, buddy." Said Erik, grabbing Hank's sleeve.

"This is ridiculous, he should be thrown out." Hank said on his way out. Moira came back with the first aid kit and settled on the ground by Raven.

"Ready to be stitched up?" she asked Raven.

"Of course." Said Raven. Even though her hand was burning she liked being held by Azazel like this. _When you lose a lot of blood your mind plays tricks on you _Charles' voice said in her head. "Get out, Charles." She snapped at him. Unaware of their silent conversation Azazel spoke up.

"I am so sorry, comrade," he said to Charles "I will leave once I can let go."

His tail was still wrapped around Raven's wrist.

"This was an accident, mate. Just cover the tip while you're training from now on. You don't need to leave us." Replied Charles.

Azazel looked unsure. Moira tapped his tail and he uncurled it so she could stitch Raven's wound. It was the young mutants that convinced him to stay.

"Please don't leave, man," said Alex "You just joined us."

"We want to learn to fight like you." Said Sean. Azazel switched his tail back and forth as he contemplated. Raven grabbed his arm and looked up at him.

"Don't leave me. You're the only one like me." She said. She dropped her human appearance and turned blue. Her words cut into his heart and he silently vowed to never leave her.

"Very well." He said. Charles clapped him on the shoulder and after Raven was bandaged up he left to continue Erik's session. Raven sat off to the side for the rest of the day, watching the devilish mutant spar with her teammates. No one got close to hitting him. Hank rejoined them and fussed over her, which she liked but he asked her why she was blue right now. Why be blue when she could make herself so beautiful? _I'm not beautiful now? _She thought to herself sadly. Maybe Hank really could cure her. If she didn't look like a freak maybe he would love her. Maybe….


	4. Fallen

Life on Shaw's sub was becoming crowded and boring. When Shaw went out he really only took John and Wade with him. When he needed muscle he brought Freddie. John wasn't half the teleporter Azazel was but he got the job done. Angel and Janos were left behind like forgotten toys with the rest of the men. Bradley, Freddie, Zero, and Logan got along fine with Angel and Janos but Victor was clearly the odd man out. He took to bullying Bradley to cope with his feelings and leering at Angel every chance he got. Victor didn't realize his behavior was what isolated him from the others. Logan made excuses and apologized for him over and over but nothing ever changed. Once again Shaw had left the sub with John and Freddie. Trying to keep the peace, Logan invited Victor to join the group in a card game. Victor was usually left out of such activities and readily joined them, taking a seat next to Bradley. Wade dealt the cards and they conversed about trivial things. The weather, submarine life, nuclear war. Nothing out of the ordinary. It seemed like peace was on the schedule for the day when a fight broke out because Bradley caught Victor cheating. The situation escalated and became violent, Victor picked Bradley up by his throat and shook him. The lights flickered as Bradley started to lose consciousness. Zero and Wade were trying to get Bradley out of Victor's grasp while Logan pleaded with him. Having had enough, Angel unfurled her wings and spit a fireball at Victor, sliding into a fighter's stance. Janos tried to hold her back but Angel was strong, especially with her wings out. The fireball startled him and Victor dropped Bradley on the floor. Wade knelt and checked him for major injuries.

"Why pick on him when you can bully someone smaller?" spat Angel in challenge. It was like everything happened at once. Zero and Logan lunged forward to grab Victor but he slipped out of their grasp. Janos stepped in front of Angel and tried to generate a whirlwind to stop Victor but he was thrown across the room before anyone could blink. Victor seized Angel and lifted her into the air, her wings fluttered uselessly.

"Put her down, Victor!" yelled Wade, drawing one of his swords. Victor just grinned at him and grabbed one of Angel's wings. She screamed in agony as he started to pull. He would have ripped her wings out if Zero hadn't shot him. The bullet landed right between his eyes and he dropped Angel. She scrambled across the room and Wade caught her in his arms. Her wings slapped him in the face as she hyperventilated and shed tears of panic.

"It's okay, it's over." Wade whispered down into her hair. Angel relaxed and retracted her wings. Zero put a few more bullets in Victor so he stayed down. With Victor down they all turned on Logan.

"You were supposed to make sure this didn't ever happen again." Snapped Zero.

"Look what he almost did to Bradley and Angel. He put Whirlwind's lights out," said Wade, gesturing to Janos who was still on the floor "You have to get rid of him, Logan."

They were all staring at him as if he'd committed Victor's crimes himself. It was not his fault they were brothers. Logan agreed with the others to put him in the brig until he could be sent back to Stryker. As Victor healed they didn't realize it was too little, too late. They had a time-bomb on the sub with them, ready to explode.

The next day of training ran far smoother than the first. Azazel was the first one awake, as usual and he had the coffee machine churning out cups for his teammates. He had mugs lined up on the counter spaced perfectly apart like soldiers. Azazel could be obsessively neat at times. He was wearing plain grey sweats like the others with a hole cut in the back for his tail. He sat on a stool and started wrapping the tip of his tail with hand wraps like a boxer would wear under gloves. When he looked up Raven was standing in the doorway of the kitchen. Human today, he noticed. He preferred the blue goddess but made no comment on her appearance. His eyes trailed down to her injured hand and he looked away sadly, cursing himself for harming her. He silently filled a mug for her and passed her the fresh coffee.

"Thanks," she said, taking the seat next to him "Here, let me."

She put down her coffee and gingerly took his tail in her lap. She finished wrapping the razor sharp tip and tucked the ends in snugly.

"Thank you, devochka," he said "Are you healing well?" he gestured to her hand.

"It's nothing, just a scratch." Said Raven.

"Bravery and beauty," said Azazel "My heart aches for you."

He dramatically put his hand over his heart as is he were making a pledge. Raven blushed and their moment was ruined by Erik and Charles entering the kitchen, sweaty from their morning run .

" How sweet, team bonding." Said Erik sarcastically. Charles was silently sending Raven disapproving thoughts but she blocked them. Azazel was already up and filling mugs for Charles and Erik

"Good morning, comrades." He said as he passed them their mugs. They were joined by the rest of the team filing into the kitchen for breakfast. Hank hung all over Raven and kissed her on the cheek every time Azazel looked their way. The excess testosterone in the room was stifling to Moira and Raven so breakfast was over fairly quickly. Charles wanted to work with Sean today so they left with Moira and Erik herded the young mutants to the weight room to train with Azazel. They started with simple drills and stretching then Azazel paired them off to spar. Still being injured, Raven was left out of the sparring to lift weights. This left Hank without a sparring partner and Azazel volunteered himself. He didn't realize everyone had stopped what they were doing to watch his match with Hank. Acting as a referee, Alex counted out from three to one and signaled for the match to start.

Hank threw himself at Azazel with all of his force and pinned him against the wall , wanting to show off for Raven. Azazel used his tail to flip Hank backwards and onto the ground.

"Nyet. Again." Said Azazel, helping him up. This went on for a while and the other mutants went back to their individual training.

"You know they're battling for you." Erik said quietly to Raven. She was lifting a barbell with her uninjured hand and Erik was using his power to bring two huge weights up and down.

"That's silly. I'm with Hank." Replied Raven.

"Our red friend doesn't care," said Erik "Who will win your heart, Raven?"

Their conversation was interrupted by Hank pounding his fist on the floor after Azazel dropped him again.

"This is stupid!" yelled Hank. He sprang to his feet and stormed out of the room. Once he was out of earshot Alex said to Azazel

"You didn't have to humiliate him in front of Raven."

"This is training, if he no train he no learn." Azazel feigned innocence.

"That was a cock fight if I've ever seen one." Erik called him out.

Raven had no idea how to broach the situation so she followed Hank to the room he was using as a lab. He punched the wall and cursed, shaking his hand out.

"Can't you see what he's doing?" Hank said to her "He's trying to drive a wedge between us."

"Azazel doesn't need to, you're doing it yourself." Raven fired back at him. They heard footsteps coming toward them and Charles came into the room with Moira and Sean. It was obvious they had walked in on a lover's quarrel.

"I hate to interrupt but I wanted to test your theory, Hank," Said Charles "Did you make the wings?"

"I'm going to die." Said Sean. He was not joking. Hank lit up and started talking at a rapid pace about supersonic sound waves. Sean stood still and held out his arms as Hank fastened yellow and black kite-like wings to his shoulders with straps and buckles. "This is not going to work." Said Sean, flapping the flimsy wings.

"Come here and hang out the window, there's a good chap." Said Charles as Sean went to do as instructed. Raven and Moira hung out the other window so they could watch the outcome of Hank's experiment. Azazel, Erik, and Alex had moved their training outside and were watching Sean from the yard. Hank and Charles leaned out of the window on either side of Sean, encouraging him to jump.

"Scream as loud as you can, if you fall Azazel will catch you," said Charles "Right, Azazel?" he called down to the other mutants. Azazel waved to signal he understood.

"Don't forget to scream." Said Hank. Sean crossed himself and looked down at the bushes. He spread his arms and emitting a single scream, he jumped. The bushes rushed to greet him and he crash-landed into them. He heard laughter from the windows above him and the mutants in the yard with him were on the ground in stitches. Even Azazel was on his knees laughing while Alex and Erik rolled around him. Finally Azazel teleported over to Sean and helped him out of the bushes.

"Why didn't you catch me?" asked Sean.

"Forgive me comrade, I was busy watching you fall." Azazel replied. They both erupted into peals of laughter and the drama of the day was forgotten. Azazel had a way of bringing everyone together without even realizing it. He was also ripping them apart from the inside. Hank stood on one side of the metaphorical rift, Azazel on the other. The rest of them scattered in between. Where would Raven land?

**Author's note: sorry for the short chapter I wrote it in a hurry. What couples would you like to see more of? Which characters should be featured more? Thanks for reading. The next chapter will be up soon, don't forget to leave a review.**


	5. TimeBombs

Azazel stood behind Raven and straightened out her shoulders, feet spread apart he curled her right hand into a fist and guided her through throwing a punch. Raven's hand had healed and she joined Azazel's group today. The boxing coaching was a pretty lame attempt to flirt on Azazel's part but it was working. Raven's fist bounced off the punching bag and she almost hit herself in the face. Erik and Sean started to laugh but Azazel shook his head at them. They stopped so they wouldn't mess up Azazel's game.

"If you weren't so focused on looking human you'd be able to focus on what you're doing." Erik called out to Raven. She flipped her pretty blonde hair over her shoulder and ignored him. Azazel had her cock her arm back and told her to try again. She might have hit the punching bag correctly this time, but Erik sent one of the free weights flying across the room at her. Azazel caught it with his tail and sent it hurtling back at Erik. He'd had centuries to mature but Azazel was just as bad as the rest of the guys. Raven was tired of all of them.

Erik was looking for another metal object to fling at Azazel when some sort of explosion rocked the mansion's foundations. Charles had taken Hank and Alex with him after breakfast so it probably had something to do with Alex's power. Charles and Erik decided it would be wise to pull Hank out of training with Azazel before someone got killed.

_Azazel, I need you down in the bunker _the telepath called out to him. With no explanation Azazel popped out of existence and reappeared down in the bunker next to Charles. The entire room was on fire.

"Jesus." Said Azazel. Charles tossed him a fire extinguisher.

"Put this out for me, mate." Said Charles. Azazel set about flitting around the bunker and putting out the flames. Hank had left long before Azazel got there. He was working on a chest piece that would help Alex master his power. Azazel put out the fire in record time and came to stand by Alex and Charles.

_Take Alex and work on his boxing. Try to get his mind off of his power. There's nothing more I can do until Hank finishes his chest piece. Will you tell Erik to meet me outside for a run?_

Azazel nodded his understanding to Charles and put his arm around Alex. Nothing cheered up the young mutants like vodka and Azazel's war stories. With Erik and Charles on a run they had plenty of time to play hooky.

"Come on comrade, we'll work on that right hook, yes?" Azazel was good with the kids. Charles hated what was going on with him and his sister but Azazel had charmed most of the group. It didn't hurt that he'd taken on an instrumental role teaching them to fight either. Charles worried what would happen after they defeated Shaw, though. He was worried he would end up regretting letting Azazel join them. For now he watched him leave with Alex. On one hand the red mutant was all death and destruction. On the other he was a great ally. Charles knew there would be difficult decisions to make soon. For now he was focused on the good of the group and Azazel was good for them. _But not good for my sister _thought Charles.

He went by the weight room to make sure they were training and not goofing off, and then he left with Erik for their evening run.

Azazel watched Erik and Charles leave through the window. The team needed some down time and there was no time like the present. Sean came to stand by him and raised an eyebrow at his unlikely coach.

"So are we going to do drills the entire time they're gone?" asked Sean.

"Nyet. We're done for the day. Time for dinner, yes?" Azazel waved for all of them to stop what they were doing. Raven turned from the punching bag and smiled at him. God, that smile. He could see it even through her human guise.

"See you later." Said Alex. Him and Sean bumped fists with Azazel on their way out_. Boys and their silly handshakes_ thought Raven.

They left to go shower and help Moira make their evening meal. She'd gotten stuck with most of the cooking. Finally, Azazel had Raven alone. He slung an arm around her shoulders and they walked out into the hall together.

"So what now?' Raven asked him. Azazel impulsively grabbed her hand and twirled her under his arm like they were dancing.

"Now we drink, Devochka." Azazel answered her. Raven loved it when he behaved this way. He could be so silly and carefree. She knew she should be terrified of him but after the last few days they'd all grown so close. What would happen in a week?

"What does that mean?" asked Raven. Azazel pulled her close and kissed her cheek.

"It is Russian for little girl." Azazel said into her ear. Raven knew Azazel wanted her in a bad way. It was pretty obvious by now. She had Hank though, and he was so dangerous. His tail curled around her shoulders and rested on the right one affectionately. Raven pulled back a little bit and held the tip in her hands. She wasn't convinced Azazel had full control over his tail. It tended to have a mind of it's own.

"Let's get you unwrapped before dinner." Said Raven. They continued down the hall together talking and laughing. They stopped outside Azazel's room so Raven could take the hand wraps off of his tail. She kissed him on the cheek and left him to go shower.

Neither of them realized Hank watched the entire exchange. They'd passed by the door of his lab. He was losing Raven, and fast. He went back to work on the serum. It was almost ready. Even if it was unstable it had to be done. There was no way he would lose Raven to that…. devil. Did it bother anyone else that their friendly boxing instructor looked like Satan?

Moira calling them for dinner interrupted his work. He made up his mind to socialize with the rest of the group tonight. If he could keep Raven and Azazel apart a few more days he would have his cure. He hung his lab coat on a chair and went downstairs. Moira asked him to set the table. Everything was normal, business as usual. Azazel would never figure out Hank's plan until it was too late. He'd never take Azazel without the element of surprise.

Victor had the element of surprise when he broke out of his cell that night. All rage and vengeance, reason was something that often escaped Victor. He was determined to get his revenge on Angel for humiliating him. He happened upon Zero and Bradley first, who were caught very off guard. They were playing cards in the common room and Victor was on them before Zero could so much as draw a gun. He took out Zero first and rounded on Bradley, ready to kill him. Bradley touched his fingers to his forehead and used his power to set off the sub's alarm system. The sirens and flashing lights would hopefully wake everyone. Victor threw Bradley against a wall; he was trying to extinguish the alarms. Instead of snuffing out the power Bradley turned on all of the lights and kept the alarms going. Victor was enraged. By now everyone was awake and something of a battle royale broke out. Logan and Victor were locked in a fight to the death this time. Freddie was the last one to wake up somehow he slept through most of the fight. He came lumbering in and took in the destruction. Then he broke up the fight by knocking Victor out with one of his fists. He landed on the floor with a _thud _and went still. Freddie pointed a collective finger at everyone else in the room

"You guys owe me big time. Clean this up." He left them with the unconscious Victor and went back to bed. As if on cue, Shaw opened the door to the reactor room and came back out to find his sub wrecked. It looked like a small tornado had blown through. Janos looked like he'd been in a bar fight so there probably had been a few tornados. He wasn't the only one either. Zero and Bradley were sporting scratches on their faces and Logan had multiple injuries. The only one that was miraculously unscathed was Wade. Angel had small tears near the base of her wings where Victor almost caught her. Wade was cleaning them for her. Janos held her hands and spoke to her quietly in Spanish. Angel flinched from the burning alcohol and slapped Wade in the face with one of her wings.

"If you do that again I'm cutting these things off with my katana," said Wade "So hold still, fairy princess." only Wade would taunt his teammates at a time like this. They were interrupted by John teleporting into the room. He had missed the entire fight; teleporters tend to keep their own hours. All this time, Shaw had been quiet, now he kicked aside debris and swore.

"Jesus Christ," he looked around the room at all of them "Victor?"

Shaw fantasized briefly about throwing Victor out of the hatch into the ocean, but it was better to return damaged merchandise. Maybe he'd get a refund. Of course he ended up hiring mercenaries with emotional issues. "John, take him back to Stryker. I want him gone or dead."

"Are you crazy?" John said to Shaw "I'm not teleporting him. He's too unstable."

"Let's just kill him." Said Zero, touching his face gingerly. He was clearly pissed about the scratches.

"No, don't kill him," Logan pleaded with them "Send us back to base. I'll make sure he's contained."

"I don't care what happens to him or you. Kill him or teleport him out of here. I want him gone." Shaw snapped at Logan_. If Azazel were here this never would have happene_d thought Shaw. He turned on his heel and went back into the reactor room, closing the door behind him. After some persuading John was swayed to take Victor and Logan back to base. Their mission was better off without them, anyways.

"Good riddance." Said Wade after they teleported away.

"That's not the last we'll see of that psycho," said Bradley "Not by a long shot."

Angel and Janos exchanged a long look. They knew Bradley was right but what could they do? Run? Fly? There was nothing to be done but see this battle through and be on the winning side. If they survived that long, John teleporting back into the room reminded Angel how quickly things could change. For now they had to clean up the wreckage of Victor's betrayal before Shaw resurfaced.

"Don't you dare bail on cleanup crew," Wade said to John "I'll kill you."

To everyone's surprise John stayed and helped them. They all had to work together now or die alone.

**Author's note: Sorry it took me so long to write this. I had a bit of a block. This is a transitional chapter. The next one will be up soon, get ready for some drunken First Class.**


	6. In for the Kill

While the mutants on the sub licked their wounds, Azazel and the young mutants partied. They waited for Charles, Erik, and Moira to go to bed then Azazel brought out the Stoli. The rest of the team had developed a taste for Russian vodka after Azazel joined them. Sean lined up a row of shot glasses and Azazel poured the vodka. Hank was drinking with them tonight and they cheered him on as Raven poured a shot down his throat. He coughed and almost choked. Raven laughed and kissed his cheek. Azazel watched them, switching his tail back and forth, echoing his bad mood. It was bad enough Raven wore her human appearance around Hank, If this kept on she would try to be human all the time. Azazel slammed his shot glass down on the counter a little too hard and they all turned to stare at him.

"What's your problem?" asked Alex. Azazel quickly deflected him, not wanting to upset his young friend with his worries for Raven. Azazel picked up two more shots and gave one to Alex.

"My problem is you did not drink enough." Said Azazel. Everyone except Hank laughed. Alex and Azazel linked arms and did their shots simultaneously. Azazel swore up and down it was good luck to do their shots this way so it had become something of a ritual to them. Now that they had been drinking for a while they kept forgetting to be quiet. Azazel had to keep shushing them out of fear the drunken ruckus would wake Charles or even worse, Erik. Alex suddenly had a burst of genius and he leaned over to whisper in Raven's ear. She laughed and nodded her head then without another word she shifted into Erik. Alex clapped his hands together excitedly. Raven often did impressions of their teammates while they were drinking. It was very entertaining. Hank had never seen them before so Sean suggested she show him. Mimicking Erik's voice, she curled her hands into fists and shook one of them.

"My name is Erik but soon everyone will call me Magneto because when I get pissed I do _this." _Raven sounded just like him. She used his power to unzip all of the guy's pants. They fell into peals of uncontrollable laughter as Sean's pants fell around his ankles, revealing boxers with rubber ducks printed on them. Sean blushed and pulled his pants back up.

"Did you come up with that all by yourself?" Sean asked sarcastically. Instead of answering him Raven shifted into Moira and pretended to swoon.

"Oh Sean, let me see your big, manly, muscles." She reached over and pulled on his sleeve. It was no secret that Sean had a raging crush on Moira. Everyone laughed at the creeping blush on Sean's face. Azazel saw it fit to intervene and defend Sean from further humiliation.

"Be me now, Devochka." Said Azazel. Raven turned around to face him and assumed his form. Deep red spread over her skin and she grew the tail. His shape was a little harder but Raven loved a challenge.

"Well, hello handsome." Raven said to him. Azazel laughed aloud at this. "Oh no, _you're _the handsome one." He replied.

"No, no, you're much more handsome than me." Raven countered.

"I suppose I am." Said Azazel, a devilish smile twitched at the corners of his mouth, his bad mood from earlier forgotten.

"Hey now, don't get cocky." Said Raven. Azazel pointed his finger at her.

"You started all of this, you're the cocky one." He said. The rest of the room was in stitches at Azazel fighting with himself over who was more handsome.

"Raven, do Charles now!" exclaimed Alex. Without missing a beat, Raven became Charles and touched two fingers to her forehead.

"I know what everyone in the room wants for lunch but I can't get it for them because I have to hide," Raven didn't understand why no one was laughing "But if I didn't I would dance like this because I'm old and I think it's the twenties."

She got up and started to dance, she criss-crossed her hands over her knees like a flapper from that era. Everyone was staring at her in horror, even Azazel. She changed back to her natural form. "What's the matter with you guys," she asked them "Can't take a joke?"

"You know, Raven if I thought it was the twenties I would probably dance like this." Said Charles' voice from behind her. She slowly turned around and faced him. He walked in a jazz square while humming _"There's no business like show business" _None of them were able to stifle their laughter. Charles let them laugh it all out then he pointed to the door.

"Off to bed then," he said "And laps in the morning with Erik and myself."

There was a collective groan and they all began to shuffle out of the room. Charles stopped Azazel before he could teleport anywhere.

"Not you, ringleader," said Charles "We're going to have a chat."

Azazel smiled sheepishly and tried to look apologetic. After everyone else was gone Charles sat down and poured them both a shot. Then he and Azazel spoke of what would happen after this week was over. They finished the bottle together and set off for bed. They didn't realize this was the last night their team would truly be united as one. Events had been thrown into place that would split them apart forever.

Despite their hangovers, the next day of training went really well. They were all awake at six for their punishment run with Charles and Erik. Everyone attended sparring practice in the weight room and spent the rest of the morning doing drills. Charles was coaching Raven on her shifting, working with her until her transformations were effortless. He would shout out names of different people and mutants for her to shift into at a rapid pace. Her boxing was even improving. They took a break for lunch then Charles took them out into the front yard. He took Azazel, Sean, and Erik out to the satellite with him and sent the rest of the group to the obstacle course. Sean looked down warily as he climbed the ladder to the top of the satellite with the others. Charles had told him to wear his wings and he had a really bad feeling about this. When they all reached the top Charles explained that the satellite would bounce Sean's sound waves back at him and carry his weight. Sean looked over the edge and shook his head.

"You're sure these wings will carry me?" asked Sean.

"They should." Said Charles. Sean looked down again then back up at Azazel.

"He'll catch me this time, right?" He asked Charles.

"Of course." Said Charles.

"Okay, I trust you guys." Replied Sean.

"Good, now jump." Interjected Erik.

"I don't trust you." Sean said to Erik. Erik rolled his eyes and opened his mouth to speak but Charles stopped him.

"Say nothing, Erik." He said. Instead of speaking Erik lunged forward and shoved Sean off the platform. He plummeted downward while screaming his lungs out. Azazel was already in action, he teleported down to the base of the satellite and got ready to catch Sean. It turned out Sean didn't need him this time, he cried out in pure joy as he whooshed through the air above Azazel. The group down in the obstacle course cheered him on. Erik grinned and watched him swoop and dive through the air. He realized Charles was glaring at him disapprovingly.

"What?" he asked his companion "Don't tell me you weren't about to push him."

They had a laugh together then they started to climb down. The day had started out so perfectly, how were they to know it would end in catastrophe?

Hank had the syringe of finished serum in his pocket all day. He was waiting for a chance to catch Azazel off-guard. It was much easier said than done. It seemed like the teleporter was never alone. After Sean's satellite session Hank went down in the bunker with Charles and Alex for target practice with Alex's finished chest piece. After blowing through several mannequins Alex got the hang of it and was able to target a single one at a time. Hank left them around six to go help Moira with dinner like he did every night. Raven sat next to Azazel at dinner and Hank watched them from across the table, silently plotting. After dinner they went their separate ways. Charles and Erik went to the study for a nightcap. Sean stayed in the kitchen and spread his flight harness out on the table. He had collected a wide array of colored markers and he was drawing swirling designs on his wings. He chatted with Moira while she cleaned up the food and dishes from dinner. Alex joined Sean at the table with his chest piece and doodled on the straps with designs similar to Sean's. Raven sat with them for a while, then she left to go look for Azazel. She found him in the weight room practicing with his swords. He didn't notice her at first and she stood in the doorway, watching his graceful dance. He truly amazed her. He could be so dangerous but at the same time he was the most beautiful creature Raven had ever met. She was fairly sure he would say the same about her. They grew closer every day and Raven knew she was starting to fall for him, but how was she going to break it off with Hank? She knew it would be wrong to move forward with Azazel without ending things with Hank. _Tomorrow _she told herself. She left without Azazel noticing her. Then, at last he was alone. Azazel heard someone enter the weight room behind him and he turned to see Hank standing there, hands in his pockets. Azazel put his swords down and faced Hank.

"Do you need something?" Azazel asked him. Hank took a few steps closer to him and tried a friendly smile.

"I was hoping we could talk." Said Hank.

Azazel crossed his arms and cocked his head to the side.

"Of course, what is it?" asked Azazel. Hank slowly closed the distance between them and touched Azazel's shoulder.

"I really need to tell you." Said Hank. Azazel raised his eyebrows expectantly. Then Hank brought his other hand out of his pocket and stabbed Azazel in the chest with the syringe and pushed the plunger. Azazel had no time to react he convulsed and fell to the ground. Hank watched him fall then he sat down on the ground next to him.

"Now, we wait." Hank said to the unconscious Azazel. At the time, Hank had no idea of the damage he was doing. He didn't know that Azazel would die without his powers.

**Author's note: I'm sorry the last two chapters were short and not very good. I hope this makes up for it. Is there anything from the movie that you guys want me to write about? Leave it in the reviews.**


	7. Save Me Just In Time

An entire day passed and Azazel's condition only worsened. Hank's forceful injection of the serum didn't cause any cosmetic differences so he left Azazel on the floor in the weight room. Sean discovered him late that night and his friends moved him to the bed in his room. The team suspected he had been poisoned but no one accused Hank. No one thought him capable of sabotaging their own plans. Charles was unable to get through to Azazel's mind in his unconscious state so he wasn't able to determine what caused the sudden coma. They put him on an antibiotic drip and set up a heart rate monitor. Alex, Raven and Sean stayed by his bedside in rotating shifts while Charles and Erik compiled any medical information they could gather on treating mutants. To say there was a lack of information would be an understatement. Alex and Sean left to go get another bag of fluids for Azazel's IV. It wasn't helping but they didn't know what else to do for him. If this kept on they would have to consider putting him out of his suffering. Raven was sitting by the bed holding his hands when the heart monitor began beeping wildly. For a moment Raven thought he might wake up but then he began to convulse.

"Erik, Charles!" yelled Raven. They came running into the room to see what was wrong. As suddenly as it began the convulsing ended and Azazel's eyes opened.

"Azazel," said Charles "Can you hear us?"

The red mutant groaned and began mumbling in Russian. Only Raven was close enough to make out Hank's name in the jumbled Russian. Hank knew what was wrong with him and Raven had to squeeze it out of him before Azazel died. Charles lifted Azazel's arm and checked his pulse. It was barely there.

"He's dying," said Charles "What could have caused this?"

"Poison," said Erik "Someone poisoned him."

"That's ridiculous, Erik it's only us here," said Charles "Maybe he ingested it accidentally."

Erik scoffed and he squabbled with Charles about poisonous plants and spiders indigenous to the mansion's grounds. Azazel went quiet then he began to cough. Raven held a cloth to his mouth and gasped in surprise when she realized he was coughing blood. She showed it to Charles and Erik then she got up to go find Hank. Erik took her place in the chair by Azazel's bed. The coughing worsened after Raven left and they turned Azazel on his side so he wouldn't choke. Shortly after he began vomiting blood and Erik held a basin for him. He called out for Raven in Russian but was otherwise unaware of his surroundings.

Raven cornered Hank in his lab. He was denying that he had done anything to Azazel. Raven knew better.

"You need to fix what you've done," said Raven "This is wrong and you know it."

"All I've done is try to protect you from him. He's a monster why can't you see that?" said Hank.

"That monster switched sides to help us. Ever since he got here he's been working overtime to win our trust and now he's going to die because he joined us." Raven was going to save Azazel one-way or another even if it meant losing Hank forever.

"He's dying?" asked Hank. For a moment he looked guilty.

"Yes, Hank he's dying," said Raven "Now tell me what's wrong with him."

"Why him, Raven?" asked Hank.

"Why him what?" she snapped back at Hank.

"Why do you love him and not me," said Hank "Is it because he has more in common with you than I do?"

Raven was furious. She could see it all to well now. Hank had used Azazel as a lab rat for his serum. He was going to force Azazel to lose his power and his connection to Raven forever, not to mention his life. It was all because Hank was insecure.

"You are the monster, Hank," said Raven "What if you had tested the serum on me, I'd be the one dying!"

"But I would never hurt you." protested Hank. Raven curled her hands into fists and turned blue. She lost control of her shifting ability when she was really angry.

"You have hurt me," said Raven "Now give me the antidote before it's too late."

It was obvious Hank didn't want to but he got an empty syringe from a drawer and drew liquid from one of his test tubes up into it. He capped the syringe and gave it to Raven.

"I'm so sorry Raven. I was just trying to save you." Said Hank.

"I didn't need saving," Said Raven "You on the other hand will need saving when he wakes up."

"You have to promise you won't tell them." Said Hank. Raven shoved him out of her way and began to leave.

"I won't but I can't speak for Azazel." Raven slammed the door behind her. Hank didn't follow. Once he corrected what was wrong with the serum he wouldn't have to be a mutant anymore so he went back to work.

Raven slipped the antidote into Azazel's IV while everyone else was eating dinner. She sat by the bed and held his hands again, praying it wasn't too late. A short time later his breathing became normal and he was no longer bleeding internally. Raven almost cried when his ice blue eyes opened and looked at her.

"Devochka," said Azazel "What happened?"

"What do you remember?" asked Raven.

"Hank, he stabbed me with something." Said Azazel.

"Please don't tell the others," said Raven "I exchanged covering the truth for your life."

"I could never tell them Hank bested me, it is shameful." He said after a moment. Raven laughed, she was glad Azazel would make a full recovery. He pulled her into his arms and held her against his chest. It reminded Raven of the night he carried her to bed.

"You saved my life, Devochka so now I pledge it to you. I am yours." He said into her ear. Raven closed her eyes and pressed her face into his skin.

"You were already mine." Said Raven. Azazel laughed at this and tightened his arms around her.

"I suppose I am." He replied.

They fell asleep curled around each other. Charles wasn't even mad when he came by later. He covered them with a blanket and left to go tell the others Azazel was all right.

Angel was caught between a handsome Spanish mutant and an equally handsome American one. Tensions on the sub erupted as Janos and Wade warred for her attention. It grew worse with every passing moment. She knew she couldn't have feelings for both of them but she couldn't choose. Janos was so sweet to her when she first joined Shaw. She happily remembered their trip to the Gucci store in Miami. But Wade was so charming and funny. Both of them came to her defense when Victor attacked her. If she hadn't foolishly challenged Victor the entire skirmish the day before could have been avoided. He made her so angry though. She didn't tell anyone that Victor cornered her in the hall outside of her room when he first arrived. He grabbed her and for a moment she was afraid he would drag her into her room and have his way with her. Luckily Wade came out of nowhere and shoved Victor away from her. Her hands were shaking and her wings popped out during the struggle with Victor.

"Stay away from her. This is your last warning." Wade said. Then he put his arm around her and walked her to the common room where she would be safe. It didn't help that Shaw was intent on putting her in Emma's place either. He would invite her into his private chambers and drink champagne with her while he spoke of his new world and how he'd make her queen of it. In truth Shaw scared Angel and she wished she'd never gone with him. Once again he'd separated her from Wade and Janos and he was yattering about pawns and queens. Like the coming war was nothing more than a chess game.

"Wade and Janos are both in love with you, but I suppose you already knew that." Said Shaw.

"I don't think so." Said Angel. Her heart began hammering in fear for both men.

"Your modesty is positively charming," Said Shaw "But we both know distracted men make terrible soldiers."

"They aren't distracted." Protested Angel.

"Well I'm bored," said Shaw "So we're going to have a little match to determine who is stronger."

Shaw was going to make them fight to the death like dogs. If she didn't intervene they would both die.

"Please, Sebastian," said Angel "Shouldn't we focus on our mission?"

"If you want them to live, choose me," said Shaw "You are to be mine. Be my queen and I will let them live."

Angel didn't know how to respond to Shaw's proposal so she just stared.

"What about Emma?" she asked. She didn't know the white queen at all but she knew she'd be pissed if she came back to find Angel with Shaw.

"Emma is not coming back," said Shaw "You have until sundown tomorrow to decide. Now get out."

Angel practically ran from Shaw's rooms. She bumped into Wade in the hall he'd been waiting for her. He caught her in his arms but she pushed him back.

"Get away from me." She said then she continued on her path. It was time to start making a plan for Shaw. She would never be free as long as he was breathing. She came to Bradley, the technopath for help. He was the only one with means of communication that Shaw didn't have access to. He couldn't communicate mind-to-mind like a telepath but he could talk to machines. He was surprised to find Angel at his door.

"What can I do for you, my dear?" he asked in his British accent.

"I need you to find someone for me and get a message to them." Said Angel.

"What's their name?" asked Bradley.

"Charles Xavier," said Angel "He used this machine at the CIA base in Virginia to find me."

"Perhaps this machine can tell me where he went, then it's just a matter of me talking to his phone or a walkie talkie. What should I tell him?" Bradley asked.

"Tell him its Angel," said Angel "Tell him I'm in trouble and I need his help."

"I presume I'm not to tell Shaw about this." Said Bradley.

"You presumed right." Said Angel.

"Smashing," said Bradley "Get back to Shaw before he smells a mutiny."

Angel turned and left to give Shaw her answer. Even if it meant breaking their hearts Angel would protect Wade and Janos. She'd protect them even if she got killed in the process.

**Author's note: ** sorry it took so long to update! Thanks for all the reviews. Especially knightrunner and crocpop!


	8. Give all My Secrets Away

A lazy day passed for the residents of the Xavier mansion. They found out Azazel would survive the night before so training for the day was cancelled while he recuperated. Raven was in her room reading since Azazel was taking a nap. There was something that smelled suspiciously like marijuana wafting from the kitchen. Raven closed the book she was reading and started down the stairs. Sean and Alex were sitting at the kitchen table looking very guilty. The light was on in the oven and Raven could smell chocolate mixed in with the pot. Charles was going to go ballistic when he busted them yet again. Raven sat by Sean and stared at them for a moment before speaking.

"You guys have got to be kidding me." Said Raven. Alex and Sean exchanged conspiratorial smiles.

"Azazel is still having some nausea from that spider bite so we baked up a remedy for him." Said Sean. After Azazel woke he told them an unidentified spider bit him. Hank was laying low in his lab for now. Hopefully he'd stay away for the rest of the week. Raven suspected Charles knew the truth but kept it to himself out of fear for Hank's life. The only thing keeping Azazel from spilling the beans was his wounded ego. There was nothing like a good secret to ruin even the most peaceful day.

"You guys do realize Charles is going to lose it when he smells this." Said Raven.

"He gave us the day off and pot doesn't give you a hangover like vodka I don't think he'll mind." Said Sean.

"Where did you get the recipe?" asked Raven.

"Committed to memory before I went to jail," said Alex "I used to eat pot brownies for my anger problem."

Raven sighed and buried her face in her hands. She was at the mercy of morons and she just had to accept that.

Charles and Erik were in the study having their nightly cocktail when the lights began to burn brighter. The black-and-white television clicked on all by itself and static began flickering on the screen. Charles thought he could see the outline of someone's profile on the TV but the image wasn't sharp enough to make out a face. Erik knelt on the ground and began fiddling with the buttons.

"Oi, mate don't change the channel," came a voice from inside the TV "Do you bloody know how long it took to find you?"

Charles could sense a mutant's mind at work from somewhere very far away. It was like another telepath that spoke a different language, one that Charles didn't understand.

"Who is this?" asked Charles.

"My name is Bradley," said the voice "A man by the name of Shaw hired me and my team, sound familiar?"

"How did you find us?" asked Erik.

"Angel wanted me to contact you, my power allows me to communicate with machines." Said Bradley.

"How fascinating." Said Charles. He had this far-away look in his eye.

"Focus, Charles," said Erik "What is your location?"

"In a bloody submarine in the sodding ocean," said Bradley "Angel said she's in trouble and she needs help. Actually all of us are in trouble."

"How many of you are there?" said Charles.

"Shaw's coming I have to go," Bradley sounded scared "I'll contact you once I know what his next move is."

As suddenly as the power surge began it ended. Erik wrinkled his nose and sniffed the air.

"I could be mistaken but I think I smell marijuana." Said Erik.

"Glorious." Said Charles. Then he started for the kitchen with Erik. There was news to share.

Erik woke Azazel and brought him down to the kitchen with everyone else. Hank was the only one not present. Even Moira was being included in this discussion. The tray of finished brownies had been cut and served on a plate in the middle of the table. Charles didn't bother fussing at them, they were adults after all and they needed to blow off steam occasionally. They were all snacking on the THC-laced brownies, even Erik and Moira. Alex had been determined to find something that would floor Azazel. He had his answer the brownies were quite potent. Azazel's eyes became bloodshot in a matter of minutes. They were discussing what course of action they should take and whether or not to trust this Bradley

"We attack," said Erik "No survivors."

"Hold on, Angel is on that sub and so are other mutants," said Moira "Clearly this Bradley wants to help us."

"Erik is right," said Azazel "We need to raid Shaw right back. Attack in the dead of night and turn as many as we can, kill the rest." He pounded his fist on the table to make his point.

"We don't know where they are," said Charles "We wait until I hear from this Bradley again, then we decide."

After some general grumbling everyone agreed with Charles. One by one they trickled off to bed. Raven helped the very stoned Azazel make it to his room. She pulled back the covers for him and laughed as he fell facedown into the pillows.

"Devochka lay with me." He mumbled. Raven settled on the bed next to him and let him curl around her. After he passed out she left to sleep in her own bed. There was nothing to stop them from being together now but Raven was scared. She had never felt this way about anyone. She wasn't sure if she was ready to sleep with him yet. Raven was no virgin but she'd never slept with someone she loved either. That night Charles dreamed of Azazel and his vision of the baby teleporters he wanted to breed. Raven was there too. Charles knew he had to be picking up on both of their dreams since his room was down the hall from both of them. He wondered if Raven would make him godfather and rolled over in his sleep. He'd resigned himself to the fact Raven and Azazel would end up together.

Angel had gotten into Shaw's vintage alcohol. She drank nearly a whole bottle of very expensive scotch. She was in his private quarters with the record player turned all the way up, dancing on a table. There were broken bottles on the floor and scattered papers from Shaw's desk. Zero heard the ruckus and came to see what was going on, a very drunk Angel greeted him. He turned off the music and watched Angel sway for a moment.

"Oh, hell." He said to himself then he began to coerce her down from the table.

"You know I was a dancer before I came here." Said Angel. Zero grabbed her waist and carefully lowered her to the floor.

"I can see that." He said, surveying the mess Angel had made.

"Are you going to tell Shaw?" asked Angel.

"Of course not," said Zero "You're going to go to bed so I can clean this up."

"Thanks, Zero," said Angel "I know everyone thinks you're just an order-taking machine but you've been a real pal to me."

"If one of us goes down, all of us go down," said Zero "Now get out of here before Shaw comes back from shore leave."

Angel thanked him again and poured herself a tumbler of scotch to go to bed with. She was stumbling her way down the hall to her room when she bumped into Bradley and almost fell. He grabbed her arms to steady her.

"Are you crazy?" he asked "Shaw can't see you like this." He put her arm around his shoulders and supported her weight as he marched her to bed. Angel waved her other arm nonchalantly.

"Shaw went out with John and Freddie," she said "Did you find Charles?"

"Shhhhh!" Bradley covered her mouth and got her the rest of the way to her room. He deposited Angel on the bed and helped her pull off her thigh-high leather boots. Well, he pulled them off because Angel's face was buried in the tumbler of scotch.

"You're a mercenary," said Angel "Why do you care about helping me?"

"I'm offended, Love. I care because you know a colony of mutants and I want to go live with them," said Bradley "I've stuck with my team because I always knew we'd find more of us."

"He's going to kill all of us, Bradley, and them," said Angel "The best life I can hope for is as his sex slave."

"You will never belong to him, I promise," said Bradley "Play along for now and I'll take care of the rest. Shaw will never have you."

Their conversation was interrupted by a knock at the door. It was Janos. He came into Angel's room and stared at both of them for a moment. For a moment Angel looked happy to see him but then her face darkened.

"Get out!" she screamed at Janos. She threw the tumbler of scotch at his head and it crashed into the wall behind him. Janos just stood there, looking heartbroken. Bradley made an excuse and left them alone together.

"My Angel, what has happened?" asked Janos. He sank to his knees by the bed and took her hands in his. Drunken tears began streaming down her face.

"You have to stay away from me." Said Angel.

"Mi amor, tell me what is wrong," said Janos "I will fix it."

"Shaw wants me to be his, if I refuse he'll make you and Wade fight to the death," said Angel "He'll kill you."

"I would gladly die for you." Said Janos. He cupped her cheek with his hand and kissed her. Angel tangled her fingers in his hair and returned the kiss. They fell back onto the bed together and stayed like that for hours. She didn't tell him about the plan she was concocting with Bradley. The less he knew the better. Angel suspected Janos was loyal to Shaw anyway out of fear. She made Janos leave when she was finished with him. If Shaw caught then in bed together the "queen" offer would be off the table. Wade knocked on her door while they were preoccupied. No one answered but he could hear them through the door. Angel didn't know that she was already killing Wade. His heart had shattered into a million pieces the moment he realized she was already sleeping with Janos. There was nothing like a secret to wreck the most peaceful day.

**Author's Note: I hope you guys liked it. This is probably the last chapter with a lot of downtime. There are a lot of secrets being kept so get ready for everything to implode. **


	9. Nightcrawler

No one verbalized it but the entire mansion knew their time to train was drawing to a close. Charles had done his best to prepare them for the coming war, now the fate of the world was on them. Everyone was serious today in spite of the pot brownies consumed the night before. Charles didn't have to get on their cases about goofing off, his team was working on it's own. Alex was down in the bunker with his finished chest piece blowing mannequins apart. Hank was in his lab putting the finishing touches on their battle suits. Sean was working on his flying up on the roof, he was never afraid of falling again. Charles had taken Erik out to the satellite leaving Raven and Azazel in the weight room. Azazel wasn't himself, the closer the imposing battle got the more worried he became. He became short with Raven when she didn't land all of her punches perfectly. He was being harder on her today than ever before. It was like last night didn't happen. In fact, the only thing he was showing interest in was Raven's hand-to-hand combat. She became frustrated and kicked the punching bag.

"This is stupid," she said "I'm not going to get any better between now and tomorrow."

"We do not know the fight is tomorrow," said Azazel "Now, again!"

"Forget it," snapped Raven "I'm done here."

She turned to leave but Azazel grabbed onto her arm and held her in place. Where was the sweet, gentle man she put in bed last night? Why was he acting so differently?

"If you do not learn you will always be weak," snarled Azazel "Do you want to be weak?"

Raven jerked away from him and stormed out of the room in tears. How had she ever loved him? Azazel didn't bother to come after her; he took up his swords and practiced. Day became evening and everyone came back to the mansion for dinner. Erik had turned the satellite dish during his session with Charles and they were all feeling pretty confident in their skills. There wasn't a lot of talk at dinner and no one drank. They were all still waiting to hear from Bradley. After dinner the President was on TV making his address about the embargo line. All of them gathered to watch it.

"This is where Shaw's going to make his play." Said Charles.

"Two superpowers facing off, that cocky bastard will be right in the middle of it." Said Erik. He took a sip of his drink and slammed the glass down on the table. Even with the coming battle nothing got in the way of his nightcap with Charles. Sean and Alex were sitting on the floor closest to the TV when the president cut out and static took over the screen. Alex was going to change the channel when Erik stopped him.

"Do not under any circumstances change the channel." Said Charles. After a moment the static darkened and went into the shape of a human profile.

"I don't have long," said Bradley's voice "It's going down tomorrow, on the embargo line. Bring your swim trunks and grenades."

"Very funny," said Erik "Can't you tell us more?"

"Shaw's playing this one close to the chest," said Bradley "I haven't seen him in days."

"How is Angel?" asked Raven. It was like everyone had forgotten about their lost friend.

"She's fine," said Bradley "I have to go. See you soon."

Then Bradley's presence was gone and cable came back on the TV.

"Well everyone," said Erik "I suggest you sleep tonight and be prepared for tomorrow." With that he stormed out of the study and headed for bed. Talking about Shaw always made him moody. Alex and Sean followed his example, very much the serious soldiers. This left Charles and Azazel alone together. Azazel was sitting in a chair on the other side of the room staring into his vodka tonic while sulking. Charles brought his drink and sat in the chair opposite Azazel's. He swirled his drink around and watched the red mutant.

"Are you going to tell me what's the matter?" asked Charles. It was obviously Raven-related, he could tell that much.

"I hurt Raven's feelings today," said Azazel gloomily "I called her weak."

"You're worried about her," said Charles "You think she won't survive if she doesn't become like you."

Azazel looked down at the floor, ashamed of himself for faulting Raven's innocence.

"I do not want her to be hunted like I was." Said Azazel.

"Do you mind?" asked Charles, tapping his fingers to his forehead.

"Da," said Azazel "Fine."

_Azazel's memory was so beautiful Charles wanted to cry. In the first one Azazel was standing in a field with a beautiful Japanese girl. She was tiny and delicate with bouncing black pigtails. She ran toward Azazel and he caught her in his arms and spun her around. Her laughter was like bells. Azazel had been very much in love with this girl, Aimee was her name. She was a mutant too with a very unstable power. She had control of shadow matter; she could make the empty space between her hands and her shadow solid. She could use it to brace for impact or to fight with shadow matter blades. It was a terribly beautiful and deadly power. Azazel worked so hard to teach her to control it but Aimee's savage nature won in the end. She lost control in a fishing village and massacred a crowd of people. The remaining villagers hunted her and Azazel down. She didn't warn him of what she'd done so he wasn't prepared when they came. Aimee was shot multiple times before Azazel could teleport away. Charles felt the way she died in Azazel's arms. He felt her heart stop beating and her tiny frame go limp._

Charles wiped away a tear from his cheek when his mind came back to the study. Azazel had finished his drink while Charles was gone.

"Thank you, Azazel for sharing that with me," said Charles "It was such an emotional memory."

"You see now, why I fear for Raven." Said Azazel.

"Raven is not Aimee," said Charles "She doesn't have violence in her heart."

"Violence can grow in a heart where it was absent," said Azazel "Violence can grow anywhere." He left Charles in the study after that and left for bed. He had never told anyone about Aimee before, only Emma knew because she'd seen his memories. Talking about her had taken its toll on his heart. He could see Aimee's nature in all of them deep down Azazel knew violence was prone for all mutants.

Raven was in her room getting ready for bed when Hank knocked on her door. She was sulking over Azazel and not happy to see Hank at her door.

"What do you want?" asked Raven. Hank came into the room and presented her with a velvet jewelry box.

"I brought you this." Said Hank. Raven smiled and accepted it.

"Diamonds make for accepted apologies." Said Raven. She opened the box and immediately snapped it shut again when she saw a syringe where her jewels should have been.

"I fixed the serum," said Hank "It will only affect your appearance, not your abilities."

"No way," said Raven "I don't want to die. Don't you think that maybe we should be grateful for our mutations?"

"So you're grateful you will always be ugly?" said Hank "You're grateful we'll always be deemed freaks?"

Raven had had it with guys putting her down today. She shifted into her blue form and used Sean's power to amplify her voice enough to hurt anyone standing to close.

"Get out of here!" yelled Raven. Hank clutched his ears and scrambled out of Raven's room. After he left she knew she had to do something drastic so she stripped off her pajamas and donned her bathrobe along with her human appearance. She snuck into Erik's room and got in his bed naked. He was in the shower when she came in and he walked out of the bathroom naked except for a towel.

"This is a surprise." Said Erik, grinning.

"The nice kind?" asked Raven. Erik sighed and walked around to the other side of the bed to get dressed.

"Go to bed, Raven I don't want to play right now," Said Erik "Maybe in a few years."

He turned around and heard her scales shifting behind him.

"What about now?" she asked. She had aged herself several years.

"I'd prefer the real Raven." Said Erik. She changed back to her younger self. "I said the real Raven."

Raven turned blue and looked down, ashamed.

"Please hand me my robe." Said Raven. Erik sat on the bed next to her and touched her indigo cheek.

"No," said Erik "You are an exotic, beautiful creature Raven. No mere mortal will ever possess the beauty you have dominion over. Have you ever looked at a tiger and wanted to cover it up?"

"Well, no," said Raven "But I-" Erik cut her off with a kiss.

"No more hiding, Raven," said Erik "Now get out of here and go to Azazel. We all know he's the one you really want."

Raven thanked Erik and left his room without her robe. She knocked on Azazel's door and stood there, naked and blue. When he opened the door she pushed past him and settled on the bed. She stretched like a lazy cat so he could take in her entire body. Azazel was speechless. He sat on the bed next to her and ran his hands over her stomach and down her legs. Raven shivered and Azazel was going crazy from the way she reacted to his touch.

"I take it you are no longer angry with me." Said Azazel. Raven smiled and Azazel felt his heart melt.

"Come here." Said Raven. That was all it took. Azazel gathered her in his arms and for the first time in her life, Raven was in bed with someone she loved.

**Author's note : this is getting intense you guys! All you people that are lurking: like greenpegasus and jessika Marie please leave me a review. Even if it's just to tell me you're reading. When I have people waiting for me to end a story it happens faster if I know how many people are waiting on me. **


	10. Seven Devils

While the mansion slept peacefully back on the sub their friend Angel was frying for what she'd done. Shaw took Janos and Angel into his private quarters and sat them down. He didn't say anything but Angel knew Shaw knew. He had to.

"So, my little chimichangas," said Shaw "Who wants to confess first?"

Janos lowered his head in shame, causing Angel to kick him.

"Please, sir, I seduced her," said Janos "Angel is not to blame."

"Don't be so eager to throw yourself on the sword," said Shaw "You don't know what she's done."

Janos stubbornly shook his head, refusing Shaw's lies. "I guess I'll just have to show you." Shaw whistled and Freddie came into the room dragging Bradley by his neck. He had a collar around his neck that appeared to be affecting his power.

"Bradley!" cried Angel.

"You see," said Shaw "She is a traitor. She made Bradley communicate with the American mutants for her."

Janos was slowly backing away from Angel. Shaw was getting exactly what he wanted.

"How could you, mijita?" asked Janos.

"I was trying to protect you." Angel was in tears now.

"I… ." said Janos.

"Don't worry, Janos, you're a good soldier and with the coming battle I'd say you're in the running for a promotion," said Shaw "Kill all competitors and the job is yours."

Janos curled his hands into fists.

"I will kill who you want me to kill, but Angel goes free." Said Janos.

"Of course, she can go with you right now." Said Shaw. Angel cast a miserable look at Bradley and left the room with Janos.

Shaw waited until everyone was out of earshot, then Wade and Zero walked into the room.

"Did you guys get all that?" asked Shaw.

Shaw thought he had a pretty clever plan but Wade had a far more stylish idea than Shaw.

Raven woke up at five AM to a screeching alarm clock . Azazel's tail had coiled around her belly sometime in the night. The night before was on replay on Raven's head. Azazel was awake before the alarm went off. He showered and went to get coffee for Raven. By the time he returned she was showered and dressed. She was standing in front of the mirror pulling her hair into a ponytail. Azazel stepped up behind her and kissed each shoulder a few times. Raven turned around and pressed her naked, scaly, body against his.

"You are striking." Said Azazel. Raven smiled and accepted the coffee from him.

"I think we should cancel the battle and stay in bed all day." Raven was only kind of joking.

"When war is over, I will carry you to this bed and ravish you for days," Azazel replied "Now we go to breakfast."

Raven pretended to pout and grumble but she picked up her coffee mug and went with Azazel anyway.

Breakfast took on a mournful air. Erik and Charles were reading their last newspaper together. Moira was frying the last pan of bacon. Alex and Sean were eating fruit loops while Sean longingly looked at Moira. Raven and Azazel were behaving very much like young people in love. They were seated next to each other with Azazel's tail wrapped around her ankle. It tended to curl around things Azazel liked. The only one not present was Hank. After everyone was done eating they went by Hank's lab. When he didn't answer the door Erik kicked it open. The entire room had been trashed.

"What possibly could have happened?" said Charles. At closer glance there was a note on the table from Hank.

_Went to the hangar early. Bring the box marked X_

Erik read it aloud and they found the box from Hank's note. Apparently it contained their battle suits. Sean opened the lid and everyone else looked in. Glaring blue and yellow looked back at them.

"Do we really have to wear these?" asked Raven

"Unless your mutation allows you to become bulletproof, suit up!" said Charles.

They all took their custom-tailored X-suits and went to their rooms to change. Sean had his newly improved flight harness and Sean's chest piece was now a jacket. Hank made a special suit for Azazel. It was dark blue and black instead of yellow and there were hidden blades sewn into the sleeves and sheathed blades in his boots. There was a special set of arm-guards to go with it as well. Hank had really put a lot of time into his suit.

"Don't you look handsome." Said Raven when Azazel came out of his room. Azazel blushed deeply.

"Let's not start that again," he said "To battle, Devochka."

They walked arm-in-arm out into the front yard where Moira was waiting with a van. Azazel had to conserve his strength so they were driving.

Once everyone was in the van they left for the hangar. For some of them, this was the last time they would ever see the mansion. Many would never return.

They still couldn't find Hank when they arrived at the hangar. They called his name and he finally emerged from inside the X-jet. He was completely blue and covered in fur. They all ran toward him.

"The serum?" asked Raven.

"It made it worse." Said Hank.

"I hate to say I told you so." Azazel blurted out. A hush settled over the room.

"How does Azazel know about this and no one else does?" asked Sean. Everyone was so silent you could hear the gears in their brains turning. Then, Alex figured it out.

"Azazel was sick because of you," said Alex "Why did you let him test it on you?

"I didn't let him, he got me alone and stabbed me with it." Said Azazel. Erik rounded on Hank.

"Are you out of your goddamn mind?" demanded Erik.

"I thought I could help him and every mutant like him." Said Hank.

"You wanted to put him out of the picture so you could be with Raven," said Moira "That was pretty low of you."

Raven and Azazel were ignoring the entire fight, just staring into each other's eyes. Erik got in Hank's face and Hank picked him up and shook him, exercising his newly found strength.

"Everyone needs to shut up and get on the sodding plane." Said Charles. The fight died down and all of them donned their flight helmets. It was going to be a bumpy ride.

**Author's note: sorry about the short chapter. Please leave a review to let me know you're reading.**


	11. Soldier, Won't You Come Back Home?

The jet ride to the Embargo line in Cuba was chaotic. Alex, Sean, and Erik were all yelling at Hank who was trying to pilot while being berated. Charles frantically tried to break it up and keep everyone in their seats with their seat belts fastened. Azazel was ignoring everything except for Raven and his new knives. He was sitting with his arm around her, twirling one of the knives from his sleeve in his other hand. Raven exchanged a knowing look with her lover while the others fought. It didn't matter anymore, after this she and Azazel would live happily ever after. When they got closer to Cuba a distress signal came on over the radio. It was automated so all they knew was that it came from Shaw's sub. Everyone stopped yelling at Hank and he cranked the radio up in case Bradley contacted them.

"This is so bad." Said Alex, listening to the static. By now they were close enough to see the ships of both the American and Russian naval forces facing off on the Embargo line. Moira was in the co-pilot's seat communicating with the American ships and getting whatever information could help them. The plan had been for Azazel to go in first and kill whomever but they didn't know where to send him yet. Charles focused and entered the mind of a Russian sailor. On the foremost Russian ship, the Aral Sea the entire crew had been slaughtered and a black man wearing the captain's hat was at the controls. Charles could feel the sailor dying and pulled out of his mind.

"Shaw had control of the Aral Sea, he's got another teleporter," said Charles "They're going to nuke us if we don't do something."

"Send me to the ship, I make short work of this teleporter." Grumbled Azazel.

"We're going to need you once the fight starts I can handle the ships, but how will we find the sub?" asked Charles. Moira interrupted before any decisions could be made.

"They've got orders to fire," she exclaimed "We're too late!"

Charles touched his fingers to his forehead and after a moment a different Russian ship fired on the Aral Sea. The explosion rocked the jet and everyone screamed or jumped in surprise.

"A little warning would be nice next time, Charles." Said Hank, dipping the jet lower to the ocean.

"Sorry," said Charles "Now about finding the sub, can we use radar underwater?"

"We need sonar." Replied Hank. Sean immediately jumped from his seat and grabbed Charles to pull him up.

"I have sonar." Said Sean.

"Yes, you do," said Charles "Come on, Banshee."

They walked to the back of the jet and Banshee called for Hank to open the hatch doors. Erik got up to help them but Sean pointed at him.

"Oh no you don't!" said Sean. Erik held up his hands and laughed and Hank opened the doors. Everyone wished him luck, and then Banshee jumped. Charles stayed in his mind the entire time he was underwater and they found the sub but nothing good would come of it.

Banshee's sound waves bounced off the sub and Janos flinched from the headset he was wearing. John had just teleported back from the Aral Sea since it had been blown up.

"They're here," said John "What now, Shaw?"

Shaw was sitting in his commander's chair with Angel in his lap. Freddie and Zero stood on either side of him and the rest except for Bradley were scattered around the sub, manning their stations and such.

"The plan stays the same," said Shaw "Freddie, come here."

Shaw shoved Angel off his lap and Freddie bent so Shaw could whisper in his ear. Everyone had their orders and it was time to carry them out. Once Shaw was done talking to Freddie he went into the reactor room and sealed the door behind him. Charles would never find them now. Bradley was attached to a wall in the reactor room and the collar holding him there was also draining his power.

"Oh, Bradley," said Shaw "From the moment I heard about your power I knew just how to use it." Bradley struggled but it only made the collar hold him tighter. He used all of his strength to send out a basic distress signal but he couldn't talk the way he had before.

"I may die here but I'll take you along with me." Said Bradley

"Empty threat," replied Shaw "I might as well tell you my plan since that collar is going to kill you in oh, say, thirty minutes."

Basically everyone had orders to kill each other. Zero, Freddie, John, and Wade had been commanded to kill Janos. Janos had been commanded to kill Wade and Wade wasn't to be executed until Janos was dead. It was a horrible, Shakespearean plot and absolutely nothing was going to go according to plan. This started with some sort of magnetic force pulling the sub up and onto the surface. Shaw was locked in the reactor room with Bradley and Freddie had set the room's controls to one hundred percent. As the sub rose Angel was thrown across the control room and Wade caught her.

"Are you ready for this?" asked Wade. They held onto each other as the sub was drawn into the air then crashed on the beach. After the pandemonium Janos was the first one in action, he generated a colossal whirlwind to crash the jet and it worked. Hank's masterpiece spun wildly out of control and crashed on the same beach as the sub. The mutants crawled out of the wreckage of their vessels and faced each other. Angel rose up in the air the moment she was able to fly and went after Sean, who was keeping the ships under control out on the water. Erik got Charles and the rest of the team moving, and then Charles sent Erik into the wrecked sub for Shaw. The beach was chaos. Azazel was locked in battle with Freddie. John Wraith had grabbed Alex and teleported him out to the ships. Raven was guarding the entrance to the jet so Charles could stay in Erik's mind. Erik dropped a piece of the sub on Janos on the way to find Shaw so he was out of the fight for now. Wade was the only one not fighting. He had a plan to carry out and there just wasn't time for battle.

**Author's note: I'm so sorry for the short chapter. I need another one to figure out the plot. Please review. Yes Seven Devils is a reference to the song because there were 7 mutants at the mansion. **


	12. Look What You've Done

Wade picked a spot on the beach he thought John might teleport to and waited patiently. The mutant that looked like Satan was in battle with Freddie and it was getting ugly. Grace and agility versus brute force, a true clash of gods. A young man covered in blue fur was fighting off Zero and Angel was out over the ocean. He couldn't reach her right now. After a few more minutes of chaos John teleported onto the beach and slammed Alex into the ground.

"John, stop," yelled Wade, running over to them "I want to kill people just as bad as you do but not like this. I won't hunt mutants anymore."

John Wraith immediately released Alex and tipped his hat to Wade.

"I was wondering when you would bring me in on the mutiny." Said John. Alex felt the hole in his jacket where his chest piece used to be.

"So you guys are going to help us?" asked Alex, standing up.

"John, you've got to rescue Bradley," said Wade "We'll handle things here, now go!" John didn't respond, he teleported out of existence. Wade and Alex surveyed the fight, trying to decide whom to help. Alex blasted Zero away from Beast and Beast lunged on top of him and knocked him out. Zero was out for the count, thank god. Wade was about to rush into battle with Azazel and Freddie when Janos attacked him from behind. Of course he would follow the orders.

"So this is what it's come to?" said Wade, drawing both katanas. Janos snapped his fingers and generated two whirlwinds.

"It's you or her, I choose her." Janos said simply, he flicked his wrists and the tornados came at Wade. He dodged them and danced around Janos, feinting left and right to confuse him. Meanwhile, Alex and the Beast were fighting Freddie. Charles had sent Azazel into the sub after Erik. He teleported to what was left of the common room and was soon joined by Erik and John Wraith.

"Hey, you're the traitor teleporter." Said John. Azazel raised his eyebrows.

"Look who is talking." He replied. Erik gave him a shove and Azazel led them to the sealed door of the reactor room.

"Who wants to teleport in first?" asked Erik. John and Azazel sized each other up.

"I think the first traitor should go." Said John.

"Nyet I think the second traitor will go." Snapped Azazel. Mutants with the same powers tended not to get along. Erik let out an exasperated groan.

"Come on you guys get serious." He said. Suddenly, a piercing whistle heard only by him distracted Azazel. Sean was calling for help. Azazel had to choose between revenge on Shaw and his new friends. Azazel was old and wise and he knew exactly who to choose.

"I must leave you, comrades," Said Azazel "The kids are calling for help."

He just barely saw Erik nod before he teleported out over the ocean. Angel had spit a hole through Sean's wings and he was going down. Azazel teleported over to him and caught him midair. They teleported to the beach and Azazel released Sean.

"Thanks, man that was close." Said Sean. Azazel grinned then immediately dropped the smile when he saw Angel flying toward the beach.

Before Shaw went into the reactor room he said if all the American mutants weren't dead by the time he came out Janos and Wade would pay with their lives. Someone was going to die on this beach.

After some more bickering John Wraith teleported into the reactor room. The first thing he saw was a weakened Bradley attached to the wall. Shaw had already absorbed all the energy he needed so he was standing there by Bradley, arms crossed and ready. Charles had been in his mind when he teleported in but now his presence was gone.

"Hello, John," said Shaw "Now what could you possibly be doing here?"

John attempted to play it cool. He could see the switch that would open the door but he still didn't know how the telepath would reach them.

"I came to bring you out to the ships, sir." Said John. Shaw grinned his scary smile and held his hand out to John.

"Let's go then." Said Shaw. John slowly moved toward him, then he teleported to the switch and opened the door so Erik could enter. Erik rushed Shaw and was thrown back into the mirror wall. One of the panels shattered and Erik fell to the ground.

_Erik, John! Cried Charles' voice in theirs heads. Keep doing whatever you did. Get the helmet off so I can hold him!_

John came at Shaw next and was flung into another wall. More and more glass cracked as Shaw's impenetrable room came down around him. Then, Erik and John made their move. John teleported circles around Shaw to confuse him and Erik used his power to snatch the helmet from Shaw's head with a cable. Shaw grabbed John by the throat and dug his fingers in. Shaw's hand burned through the teleporter's skin and he died instantly, blood pouring from the wound. Then, Shaw froze because Charles was holding him with his power.

_Erik I can't hold him for long! We want him alive don't-_

Charles was cut off because Erik took Shaw's helmet and put it on. He used his power and with the wave of a hand Bradley's collar fell away. Bradley fell to the ground and clutched at his throat.

"Kill the blighting git!" yelled Bradley. Erik produced a coin from his pocket and held it out to the frozen Shaw.

"Now, I'm going to count to three," said Erik "And you're going to move the coin."

Back on the beach Charles had lost connection with Erik and now he was using his power to monitor the ships. The sailors were in shock over what they'd seen and the government had seen it too. There would never be a mind-wipe big enough now. The cat was out of the bag and the beans had been spilled. The fight on the beach was dying down. Zero was back up and he was fighting Alex and Beast while Azazel and Sean handled Freddie. Angel saw Wade and Janos trying to kill one another and abandoned her mission. She flew over to them and one of Janos' tornados sent her spinning wildly. Wade dropped one of his katanas and ran to catch her. Janos attacked his back and Wade spun and swung his katana. In one horrible, earth-shaking moment Angel was caught between their clashing powers. She came in between them just as Wade swung and his katana cut through half of her right lower wing. Angel screamed in agony and crashed into the sand, blood pouring from her severed wing. Janos and Wade both ran to her. Janos held her in his lap and gave Wade his jacket to staunch the bleeding.

"I'm so sorry, Angel this is all my fault," said Wade "I should have told you about my plan sooner."

Angel reached out for Wade and pulled him closer.

"Get me away from him." Was all she said. Janos' face was a picture of shock. Wade had cut her wing, not him.

"Why, Mija?" demanded Janos "He is a traitor, if he had just followed our orders-"

Angel cut him off as Wade lifted her up into his arms.

"You did this Janos, by following Shaw's orders," said Angel "You chose Shaw over me."

"She has a point." Said Wade. Angel circled her arms around his neck and began to cry.

"No, no," protested Janos "I did this for you. Shaw said-"

"Shaw told us all to kill each other," said Wade "He almost got his wish. If you had turned, Angel wouldn't be bleeding."

"I would have chosen you, Janos," said Angel "But look what you've done. I can't."

Wade carried her away from Janos and brought her into the shallow surf so the salt water could clean her wound. The rest of the battle was done and they were on the winning side. Azazel took a cheap shot at Freddie while Raven made a distraction, turning into Shaw. Finally, Freddie was down in the sand. Sean finally stunned Zero and Alex took his guns and cuffed his hands behind his back with his own handcuffs. That's what you get for using your powers as a single-manned police force. They all stood back, satisfied with their work. Charles came out onto the beach and looked around proudly at his students. Little did they know Erik was about to split them in half forever. A silence settled over the beach as a crucified Shaw floated out over the sand. Erik and Bradley came out of the sub and with a flick of the wrist Erik dropped Shaw's body. Moira was already on the radio trying to tell her superiors it was over but no one responded. Everyone gathered in a circle with Erik and Charles in the middle. Freddie was back up and done fighting once he saw Shaw's body. Zero sat up on his knees and listened. Wade brought Angel over to Bradley and they hugged.

"What happened, Love?" asked Bradley. Angel cast a dark look at Janos and said.

"Don't ask."

"Where's John?" asked Wade.

"He didn't make it," said Bradley "He sacrificed himself for us."

Erik began making a speech. He was saying it was mutants versus humans now and if you weren't with the mutants you were against them. The ships were targeting the beach, ready to nuke the heroes of the day. Both Erik and Charles confirmed this. Moira was on the radio with no one listening. All of them stood in horror and watched as the missiles fired. Azazel grabbed Raven and their team joined hands, ready to teleport. Erik stopped the missiles but then he turned them on the ships. It was like everything happened at once. Charles tackled Erik. Some of the missiles dropped into the ocean. Erik swung at Charles and got back up, the missiles continued on their course. Moira came at Erik with her gun and we all know what happened next. Erik deflected the bullet and it hit Charles in the back. It was like everything happened at once. Erik let the missiles go and dropped to Charles' side, screaming.

"Charles, we want the same thing," said Erik, the other mutants tried to move closer but Erik screamed at them to "Get back!'

"No, my friend," said Charles "I'm afraid we do not."

Erik backed away from Charles and pointed out at the ships.

"They hate us, they would have killed us," said Erik "Come with me and we will fight for all of mutantkind. Join my Brotherhood."

Everyone just sort of stared around at each other. Alex, Sean and Beast instantly chose Charles, gathering around their professor.

"I want to go with them," Angel said to Wade "Enough violence."

Wade brought Angel over to Charles' side and Bradley followed.

"Look's like we're coming with you." Said Wade to Charles. In turn, Janos chose Erik and so did Freddie. Zero said they were all crazy and he was going back to Stryker. Azazel looked down at Raven and grinned.

"Shall we go home, now?" asked Azazel.

"Go with him, Raven," said Charles from Moira's lap "It's what you want."

Raven began to cry and she knelt on the ground by her brother.

"You promised to never read my mind." Said Raven.

"I promised you a great many things," said Charles "I love you so much Raven and you are beautiful just how you are." He kissed her hand. Azazel knelt down and shook Charles' hand next.

"I thought we would come with you, brother," said Azazel "We will visit."

"You better," said Charles "And you better take care of her." Azazel nodded. They all stood on their separate sides. Azazel and Raven joined hands with Freddie, Janos and Erik. Angel, Bradley, Wade, Sean, Hank and Alex waved goodbye to them. Then, in a flash they were gone. The first class had graduated.

**Author's note: don't worry there will be an epilogue or a short story continuation. Hearts Under Fire is not over. How do you guys feel about Bradley's role in this story? Do you think it was silly or cool? Thanks so much for reading and lots of love to all my readers. Knightrunner, I started this last night so it would be posted for you today. I hope I didn't disappoint you. Oh and don't worry about Janos and Angel they'll meet again soon.**


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